Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1887-05-20
sfOm Hera Ia n fem In finn

| meanb wlGC0m. Here IL q female face
carved OF the priceless serpentine, out
OF which was made the money OF The
Aztecs. This must be the image Of
some princess or queen. Here are q
number OF urns used In religious cere'
moDy-used in sad truth, to hold the
blood OF sacrificed human victimp, and
here Ia fac timile Of the famous, the
terrible stone Of sacrifice; the original
was seen at the New Orleans Exposi,
ton, and Is now in the National Mu.
scum In one Of the government build.
ings Of the Mexican capitol. 1t IL a
historical and religious monument.
Horrible sort Of religion, you say, and
yet our Eastern ancestors made human
sacrifice to God in the long ago.
Sixty thousand human hearts are
said to have been out out on tnig stone
OF sacrifice, and held quivering up TO
the war God, bloody Hutzilopopotchtli,
or rs the guide book says, to the "Sun
of God" The blood Of these victims
ran Into the bowl In the centre, and
then along the trench to the side where
1t was soften drunk by the sinister
priests with their mated black locks
flowing down their backs" Then, most
horrible I" picture, the body Of the VIC
tim was served by his csptor In ban.
quet to friends with delicate wines and
fruits.
Near the sacrificial stone stands fac
simile Of the Goddess Of Coatlicur, the
serpent deity representing the earth,
This statue, eigh. feet high In the origi-
nal, as we'll rs tho famous Aztec calen-
dar, that immense stone carved with
mystic carvings. and many Others OF the
larger idols, were found deep In the
earth while worEmen were excavating
In the capital and other Mexican cities.
The Spanish priests buried these i'm.
ages and carvings IS they burned the
Aztec books, to wean the people from
their old idoiatrous faith. One conld
linger and wonder and speculate for
honrs over theee ancient 70 les, but
there are many things yet 10 be seen.
Yonder is tho bull fighting collection,
with swords and speara used by the
mafadors aud torreros In hghtlng and
killing the bull. There Is the red flag
that maddens him, the pico that pieroes
his tough hide, the dogdar that cuts his
spinal cord, the suits worn by long
list OF famous matadors, bull tiShtsrs,
nearly Gil OF whom were ut last killed
In the ring.
1uOt0 dic tuc VI tub
highway robbers who have figured in
70 many dime novels; relics OF the Days
of the InqHisition, and souvenirs OF the
short reign Of brave. ll.iated Maxi.
milan and poor CarlOtta. Here Is the
luckless emperor's state table C 9th,
with the imperial arms woven into It,
and hsre the chocolate stick that stirred
the last cup of cocoa that he drank be.
80 a. Ia.
one OF the guns that did the murderoug
deed, while all Europe and America
looked on without active protest.
The old pictures and manuscripts OF
the "villape" are worth looking at.
They are undoubtedly old. The pic.
lures are chiefly valuable from their
q iaintness and their historic associa-
ton. Nest of them are religious In
subject. Several OF them are oil paint.
ings upon copper. One Ia q portrait OF
Mexican beauty and poct-Inez de Ia
CIuz. She was the belle Of tho court
OF Viceroy Mausera two hundred years
ago. Her genius and beauty were
praised through the realm. S1dden y
she disappeared and was heard from Ia
o convent as Sister Junua. There, In
tho seoiusion Of her nun life, she wrote
SShhooACo, RIA u Cu SbShJo auo tFtss. . tu
science and theology that smszei the
learned scholars and divines. Upre.
Quilted love, II WAS said, drove her In to
this nunpory. Love and religion play
q large part in the drama Of Yesterday.
The mummies in yonder gloomy, black.
draped tent In corner OF the hall are
the result Of this same al. potent pas.
sion.
They are the bodies OF Spanish
priest and Mexican Sirl. They were
immured aliv1-huIlt into cathedral
wall of solid masonry. The priest for.
aot his vow of ceibacy, Was punished
by Confinement in cell; he rebelled
ard was partly strangl.d, then walled
In with stones and mortar. The girl
loved Spanish officer and Was sen. by
her angry parents to q convent. Her
lover tried to rescue her, but in the at
tempt two priests we're killed. The IN
happy lovers were sentenced to death
by the tribunal OF the Inquisitlcn.
The girl flercely struck at her judges
with po!nard. She was at oDos taken
and bull; mp alive In the wall of the
Cathedral. The lime and hermatic
sealing precluded decay, nnd the flesh
and skin shriveled and dried to The
bones. 1t Ia curious to see with what
horrible viYidness the bony figures and
faces express the mortal agony of death.
The attitude Of the girl would be a good
study Tor sculptor or an artist. The
strained limbs ard feet on tiptoe,
stretched out In the last spasm; the
head thrown back, the fsce-s0 fear.
fully distorted-expressin the anguish
OF dying struggle. The massive hgure
and face Of the priest Is caimer. The
arms are locked tight across tho chest.
The face and figure express agony borne
with more strength Of will than the girl
ooBld command.
And these were beings who lived and
loved tuo hnndred years ago. Do they
look like 1t now? One cN nut trust 40
freak of nature nor skill OF art will pre.
serve ones frams In wi,aertd mummy
guise for living men and women 10
gaze at two hundred years from now.
Rather let dust mix with dust SO
fully that in some far oft summer a
flower may be shaped from the elements
ri n t,t tol hain